Doing sports is one of my favorite pastimes, so I decided to continue doing body conditioning this semester. This also helps me being balanced as I find doing sports makes me more relaxed and calm. Unfortunately, I had problems with the patella ligament in my knee so I could not run, which was frustrating as I love long-distance running and was close to running a half-marathon. Fortunately, I could still use the gym in the school to work out and get exercise nonetheless. COVID-19 brought another change to my workout habits, as schools were closed and Colombo was under complete lockdown, meaning I had to exercise at home. However, this was not a disadvantage as I had more time to do sports.

I don’t like using weights but rather do work outs that use my own body weight, such as push-ups, dips, pull-ups and a variety of core exercises. To warm up, I always did rowing on the machine, since it is a good way of engaging your muscles before doing something more difficult. I mostly did three reps of 10 push-ups, 3 times 8 dips, and 3 times 10 leg raises and many sit-ups. I find stretching afterwards one of the most relaxing parts of a work-out and it is also important to keep muscles healthy. It is really satisfying to see myself improve, such as being able to do one more repetition for an exercise, because it shows that my dedication has a positive effect.

Side plank.

COVID-19 did reduce the amount of sports I did because firstly I cycle to school everyday which I stopped doing and secondly I did not have access to a gym in which I could do sport. Of course one can do the above-mentioned exercises anywhere, but a gym gives me that motivation that I don’t get as much when I do the same exercises in any other place. Despite this challenge, I tried to do sports at least once every two days, which included exercises like push-ups, sit-ups, leg raises and squats. I also occasionally ran up and down the hill of our small by-road where few people are outside, and none when I run there in the evenings. This is a good exercise partly just to get outside, but also to run more, which I love doing and which is a great feeling. I combined this with doing body weight exercises as it is also a good way to warm up. I enjoyed working out by the pool in the afternoons or evenings, as it is one of the few places where one can get fresh air.

Dips. The ladder into the pool was the best thing I could find for this.

Push ups.

All in all exercising is not only fun and relaxing while doing it, but also has lasting health benefits when I do sports regularly. For me working out is less of a challenge to become much more muscular or stronger (although that is a welcome benefit) but rather as it feels good – I feel much more motivated and balanced after doing a hard workout and I also sleep much better after working out.